Sunrise
by Pen Journey
Summary: An early morning in Suyyla. Some F/V that will lead into some L/V later on. Neapolitan in the future. Requested by Major Mike Powell III.
1. Chapter 1

**Well this was originally supposed to be a requested Neapolitan fluff story, but unfortunately I took it in a completely different direction. I'll bring it back on its intended track with a few additional chapters though...this was really more of an introduction than anything else. This is my first attempt at a romantic fic...so I apologize beforehand. **

**Sunrise**

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><p>Eyes flickering across one of the bright reflecting pools of Sulyya Springs, Vanille exhaled a jubilant sigh of relief. She was finally <em>home, <em>thought the Pulse-born native, her bare toes stretching out to entrench themselves within the soft grassy floor and the rich, dark soil beneath it. She enjoyed this, the natural feeling of her skin touching the earth. Since birth she had a great respect for Gran Pulse, a feeling of astonishment and wonder, of curiosity and the never-ending desire to explore every valley, every sun-dappled trail and the vast expanse of the outstretching plains. Now returning to her homeland, not much had changed geographically over the past five hundred years, those feelings returned with unstoppable force.

Gran Pulse was vibrant and beautiful, fragile yet resistant, and the sense of nostalgia and childhood memories permeated the air with each passing night. Besides her hometown of Oerba, the foremost location to indulge herself in such pleasant memories was none other than Sulyya Springs! Nestled within the mountains of the Archylte Steppe, the famous Springs were a popular spot for tourists across Gran Pulse and natives alike to visit.

The memories she had spent here, her family when she was only a child and Fang when the two were older, were but fleeting glimpses of her life before, well...the fal'Cie...Cocoon...their Focus. Vanille swallowed a knot in her throat, not because she did not want to release those enjoyable moments of the past, but simply because she didn't want to cry. Not like this, not when the others were around. The thoughts of never returning to what she had was saddening, but the unknown mysteries of what lay ahead was far too important to set aside.

She was a l'Cie, and because of her lies she had thrusted a fate that could not be reversed upon innocent people, the very few who were strewn lazily about the makeshift campsite, lost in their own dreamlands. She also couldn't count how many deaths could have been avoided if she had not lied to so many people.

Vanille shivered, a finger stretching out to dip into the perfectly still water of the pool. Bismark, the resident fal'Cie, was elsewhere, so Vanille swirled her finger around the temperate water without caution. The evening was reaching its end, the faintest signs of rosy red and pink clouds on the horizon. The moon hung low in the sky, shining defiantly despite the battle it knew it would lose.

Caught on that last thought, a smile broke out onto her lips. No matter how hard the moon tried to illuminate the sky during the day, the sun would always best it, the distant stars shying away against the sun's presence. In a way, the ensuing fate of what her Focus would lead her to do was similar. No matter how hard she tried, being a l'Cie came down to two simple concepts: become a crystal, or go Cie'th. Neither sounded too appealing. But the fact was that even if fate was unescapable, she could not let it ruin her life in the present.

Serah said that she could run away and face it later, and by doing so Vanille desired to switch her thoughts to the here and now, living for today instead of wallowing over what will happen tomorrow.

_A swim would be quite refreshing right now..._

She slid her entire hand into the water, testing it. Turning back, she scanned the lazy sleepers. Snow was huddled next to the fire, snoring loudly enough that Vanille wondered how none of the others bothered the giant oaf about it. Hope was close by, nuzzling his trusty boomerang. Snow was sure to keep the silver-haired teenager in his sights. Sazh had drifted off against the lone shade-providing tree, a flash of bright yellow within his afro meaning his chocobo was asleep too, probably making a nest.

Vanille's eyes brightened as they laid upon the sight of Fang's sleeping form, the redhead failing at stifling a smile. The closest to Vanille, as she wasn't going to worry Fang by straying too far, the raven-haired woman slept soundly, a single hand reaching out towards Vanille. Her tanned skin was smooth and deceptively soft, the rough calluses on her palms telling you otherwise. Fang was the strongest person Vanille knew, stronger than Snow, yet her body retained her feminine design. Her sari, used as a blanket for the night, shuddered in a light breeze, revealing her navel, just a slit in her flat stomach. Her lips were only slightly ajar, minuscule drops of drool beginning to form. Fang was curvy, yet well sculpted, lovely and savage just like the rest of Gran Pulse.

Vanille grasped Fang's hand in her smaller one, rubbing her thumb across the woman's palm affectionately. She immediately froze when her eyes reached Lightning's steel blue gaze, the soldier girl gazing at the pair's tender moment. Lightning was sharpening her gunblade, quiet except for her whetstone grazing across the surface of her weapon, but Vanille knew the strawberry blonde was aware of what was going on. Retracting her hand back to rest on her lap, Vanille swallowed another lump in her throat, her eyes snapping to the pool before her, her cheeks flushed with red.

"Morning." Lightning stated in a calm monotone.

Vanille cringed, the hair on her neck rising up as she sensed Lightning's presence next to her. Silent as ever, the soldier had made her way next to Vanille, nearly causing the younger girl to leap out of her skin. A smile was suppressed as she watched Vanille quickly shuffle a few feet backwards, startled. Instinct led Vanille to inch closer to Fang's huddled form. Hand's subconsciously encircling themselves around Vanille's waist, eager to drink in the familiar source of warmth.

"M-Morning." she squeaked, obviously embarrassed by the way Lightning had caught her. Her blush only deepened as Fang tightened her grip on Vanille. Not bothering to pester the girl further, Lightning merely sat down against the waterline, the bioluminescent plants glowing evermore faintly as the sun crawled into view. A finger poked the reflecting pool, sending out tiny ripples to disturb the image. She trailed aimlessly through the water before drawing her finger out and shaking the water off.

"The others will be awake in the next few hours," she began, her eyes still on the water. Vanille looked at Lightning with earnest, as the opportunity to strike a conversation with her was more rare than Snow's cooking being delicious. "But why are you up so early? You and Fang are typically curled up against each other for hours."

Vanille let out a nervous, whispered laugh before gingerly removing Fang's arms from her waist. The redhead only succeeding in receiving an annoyed, sleepy groan from her before Fang's arms were once again tight across Vanille's stomach. She sighed comfortably, enjoying the tiny embrace but didn't let herself get lost in it when Lightning was but a foot away.

"I figured I would go for a swim, ya know. Relax a little before you march us off to fight more scary monsters!" she giggled softly, rocking back and forth. Lightning quirked an eyebrow at Vanille's sudden energy and enthusiasm, pondering when the girl was actually able to sit still for a moment.

"Well Pulse is dangerous. Can never be too sure. No one would want you getting hurt." Lightning replied, her eyes flickering over to catch Vanille's vibrant green, her statement regarding Fang. It was Vanille's turn to raise an eyebrow, a quaint smirk on her lips.

"What's that now? Is the great Lightning Farron caring for the safety of little ol' me?" Vanille raised a hand to touch the base of her neck and gasp in mock surprise. Lightning opened her mouth to chide Vanille but abruptly paused, then shut her lips. Her eyes shifted ever so stealthily, but Vanille caught her redhanded. Quickly standing up, hands on her hips and a reprimanding look on her face, Vanille stared down at Lightning. The soldier was showing the faintest signs of fright, or was just playing along.

"Ya know, even if I might not be as strong as you or Fang, I can still fight! Without me you wouldn't know how to tackle down the baddies here!" Lightning's eyes widened, shuffling back to distance herself from Vanille who only bent down to scowl at her. "You don't need to worry about me, missy. I should be looking out for you, seeing as Hope and I are the better healers."

Lightning wasn't the least bit intimidated by Vanille, playing along to hear the whole story. She found the redhead to be quite adorable when her mood swung so quickly from happy to mad. Vanille was playfully angry at Lightning, but scolding her nonetheless. Lightning smirked.

"You have your uses." she jeered, receiving another gasp of astonishment, this one far more serious, from Vanille. "Hey!" the redhead countered, jabbing Lightning's shoulder. The soldier girl wasn't even phased by the attack. "That wasn't nice, Lightning."

The strawberry blonde smirked, eyes darting up to see Vanille's trademark pout that Fang always fell for. The similarities between Vanille and Serah was a growing list, Lightning noticed the longer she stayed around the bubbly young girl. She was so happy, so carefree it was hard to imagine a sad Vanille, and try as she might Lightning wouldn't try and conjure the image. Her time around Vanille was short so far, especially nowadays with Fang around, but the soldier girl couldn't help but feel some connection towards her. Whether it was due to the loss of Serah and those similarities that drew Lightning to her, or the weak, clumsy, and utterly lost aura she read off of Vanille from the moment they met, she felt something.

"So says the girl who just punched my arm..." she replied, rubbing the appendage for effect. A grin was suppressed when she saw a flash of worriment on Vanille's face. The young Pulsian actually took a step forward to feel it for herself before scoffing at Lightning. "Hey!" Vanille's arms were shaking slightly by her sides, fists balled tightly. "You actually had me worried for a moment there!" Lightning blew a stray lock of pink hair covering her view, watching Vanille stomp away.

Lightning would never let whatever feelings she felt for Vanille grow any further. The younger girl held a certain ambience about her that made Lightning want to reach out and protect her, finding it strange that anyone other than Serah had evoked such thoughts. Judging from how Sazh, Hope, and certainly Fang felt around the spirited redhead it was of no surprise. Vanille was an attractive person, but it would only be moments wasted when all six of them were on borrowed time anyhow.

"Care to join me?" she asked, her voice returning to its cheerful and happy tone. Her shoes and most of her jewelry had already been discarded prior, and Lightning looked up to see the beer pelt strapped onto Vanille fall to the ground.

Lightning raised an eyebrow and observed Vanille continue to strip, not seeming to care that Lightning was a few yards away. Remembering that Vanille had spoken about swimming a few minutes ago, Lightning politely declined with a nod of her head. Then realizing that Vanille wasn't even paying attention to anything other than testing the water with a dainty foot and removing various articles of clothing, the strawberry blonde spoke up.

"No..." Lightning began, swallowing slightly when Vanille carelessly took off the cloth sashes around her waist, effectively revealing her backside to her.

Her eyes drank in the smooth, milky skin on the redhead's body, her bright curls spilling down her back as she removed the bands. Lightning felt slightly awkward watching the younger girl strip down, twisting around to let the girl have some privacy, but the sight captivated Lightning's eyes. The long smooth line of Vanille's arms, the curve of her elbow, the vulnerable dips of her underarms and legs as the girl stretched skyward. Her entire body shivered subtly in its state of near-nakedness, up from her bare feet and hips, through her narrow waist and the lines on her back.

Lightning watched, her mouth dry, only seeing the display through her peripheral. She had a hard time believing that this girl could act so innocent about such an indecent act. With an audible swoosh, the abbreviated top the redhead always wore floated to the ground, and then Vanille was naked. Lovely beyond compare. Lightning abruptly turned all the way around as Vanille shifted to see her. A slight red tinge was on her cheeks as Lightning got onto her feet to leave.

"Wait! Why don't you join me?" Vanille asked sweet and endearing, the question only seeming to taunt Lightning. Sighing, the soldier girl turned back to give Vanille the respect of at least looking at her before responding.

"Uh...No...I'll just watch you..." she stuttered, shaking her bangs over her eyes to hide Vanille's nude form. Thankfully she had sunk deep enough for the water to cover most of her.

It was then that Lightning realized how awfully creepy her previous sentence just sounded. Her mouth opened listlessly, unable to form words. Her eyes scanned to the left and right, looking for a possible route to get out. Vanille didn't seem to catch it, thankfully. Her lips formed an innocent pout at Lightning's resistance.

"Oh come on! It'll be fun!" she piped up, waving her arms around in the shimmering pool. "The water is nice and relaxing." she added, her voice rising over the pitter-patter of the tiny streams of water from the pools residing on the rocky outcroppings above. "No thanks, Vanille. I'll be fine." Lightning replied, her thoughts shifting to how she would manage the groups time today.

They'd reach Oerba in a few more days. Taejin's Tower loomed in the distance, leaving Lightning in a muddled state, wondering how long it would take the six of them to trek through it.

She was lost in bewilderment at how Vanille could not worry about what was before them. They didn't have time to waste on swimming. Her strict soldier regimen kept her going these days as red eyes slowly began to open upon their brands, but looking at Hope or Sazh or even Snow sleeping soundly, calm, Lightning felt like taking a break sounded like a good idea. Swimming though, was still out of the question.

"But _Lightning!_" Vanille whined, a child begging her parent to get what she wanted. The older woman was resolute though.

"Yeah, Sunshine, why don't ya join us for a swim, huh? We got hours before the other three wake up." Fang chimed in, her voice startling both Lightning and Vanille. Their heads twisted to the lying form of the huntress, her head cocked to stare at the other two, a toothy grin on her face.

"Fang!" Vanille called out in surprise, not noticing her companion waking up. She waded through the water till its edge, the raven-haired woman quickly rolling out of the few articles of clothing she wore under her blue sari. Not bothering to test the water like Vanille did, Fang strode confidently into the pool, the water only coming up to her waist.

Lightning only felt the awkwardness of the situation for her increase as the two Pulsians, both completely naked and Vanille's skin glistening with crystal water droplets, embraced. Fang craned her neck down to kiss Vanille's head affectionately, her arms encircling the redhead's waist possessively. Fang grinned as Vanille melted into the hug, nuzzling closer to the raven-haired woman. Lightning rubbed the back of her neck as Fang smirked at her.

"What's the matter, Lightning?" Fang asked with mock sternness, but the face suddenly lifted to a sarcastic smile. "You're not shy are you?" Fang seemed to invite Lightning to join them in the experience. Lightning paused, but shook her head no. Turning on her heel she briskly walked away from Fang and Vanille, not stopping despite their protests.

It wasn't that the situation in itself was awkward, despite the two Pulsians being completely nude in the water at the moment, but Lightning felt like detaching herself from the moment. While Fang and Vanille weren't objecting towards the others touches and glances as they carried on after Lightning's departure, the strawberry blonde was beginning to feel like a third wheel.

Still, she felt a twinge of jealousy for what Fang and Vanille had. The bond the two shared reminded Lightning of her and Serah's relationship so many years ago, before she went by the name of Lightning. She missed that feeling of having someone look up to her, someone to protect and someone who loved her. And while she knew Serah still loved Lightning with all her heart, they were family after all, the feeling of being selfish haunted Lightning, having not reciprocated those feelings since their parents had died.

When Fang and Vanille's eyes met, they conveyed the thoughts that they could find no words for, and probably something more primal too, but Lightning wanted to have something similar to that also.

As the last remnants of the nighttime sky faded away, the morning sun casted its bright gaze upon Gran Pulse. The sky was lit ablaze with a variety of different shades and hues of deep reds, vibrant yellows, and fiery oranges. The white puffy clouds gave way to the shining star, its gaze enveloping the cracked shell of Cocoon. Sparkling fresh dew covered the grassy floor, the wildflowers swaying every so gently in the breeze.

As Lightning trudged through the gathering of trees away from the canyon Suyyla was nestled in, she found herself drifting off to such childish thoughts of love and the future after her Focus. To her, love was a fool's luxury, but the relationship Fang and Vanille had for each other, whether they were friends, sisters, or soul mates, Lightning found herself wanting.

It was something so fragile and unobtainable to Lightning, a different kind of fight that she couldn't plan nor strategize for. Something so spiritual and wholly beautiful for her to share with another, to nurture a blossoming sensation she could only fathom of now.

It was futile and meaningless to waste time on such thoughts, but Lightning couldn't help the pull she was feeling.

Lightning did not know if she truly wanted it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys, so here is Chapter 2. The requester wants to be named, so this story has been brought to you by Major Mike Powell III. As I said, this is an implied F/V fic leading into L/V, and ending in a saucy Neapolitan. **

**To the reviewer named Steve: Sorry, but I don't think introducing Jihl to the story isn't a good idea. Since this is a reader requested fic, I can certainly find some magical way to bring her in, but I don't think a Sazh X Jihl relationship is plausible. If you would like, I can write a separate story for Sazh and Jihl. Thanks for reading Sazh Needs to Get Laid, by the way. :D**

**Sunrise**

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><p>The chill of the morning air stung Lightning's bare skin. She was not naked, but even clothed little goosebumps were beginning to form. Mornings spent on Gran Pulse were normally not so chilly, but today just had to be one of those days were nothing really went so well. The partial lack of sunlight, as the dense flora canopied the seemingly naturally made basin the six l'Cie were marching through, was a factor, but the looming clouds above were also responsible for Lightning's sour mood.<p>

A few hours had passed since her little "moment" with Fang and Vanille, and Lightning still felt pissed off. Her stomach was a churning sea of emotions, her head dizzy trying to sort out her muddled thoughts and emotions. The mental walls, securing her emotional infrastructure, erected by the Guardian Corps during her time as a soldier had been breached so easily by the display of romantics Fang and Vanille produced.

The two Pulsian natives were certainly attractive; her rigid conditioned mind couldn't deny that, but their aesthetics weren't what set Lightning off like that. Her mind and body were so eager to escape the situation even though the two were both fine with the proposition in the first place. Based off mere physique alone Lightning knew her sexuality wasn't entirely in question, as she had to admit that even Snow looked good without a shirt on.

Lightning concluded that it was the mere fact that Fang and Vanille shared something so deep and passionate and loving that set her own mind off in a dizzy haze of jumbled up emotions. She wanted to have something similar to what they did, and while Lightning was more drawn to Vanille than she was to Fang, her stubborn mind would resort to the excuse that it was the dead-end situation they were all in that brought upon the attraction.

No one wants to die loveless and a virgin, Lightning didn't count the sisterly loving affection she had for Serah years ago, so the soldier girl figured her brain conjured the illusion that before she died she wanted to experience the moments and emotions she had forcefully subdued for so long. Logically her brain went to her male companions, but results were obvious.

Hope was too young, and more of a favored student than someone she could have a relationship with. Sazh was the opposite, too old and and a widower. Besides, she knew they would never be anything more than friends. Snow was her sister's fiance, and while she divulged that Snow was physically attractive, he was too much of an idiot for her tastes anyhow. She couldn't betray her sister.

So in a last ditch effort for Lightning to find love before she turned to crystal or went Cie'th, her stubborn brain subconsciously thrusted her into Fang and Vanille's more personal circle. Lightning cursed herself for being so weak.

"L-Lightning!" Hope panted, bent over and gasping for breath. In other occasions Lightning would be generally concerned, but she knew the reason for Hope's discontent. The fearless leader had ordered the other five l'Cie to march to Taejin's Tower, they had left Suyyla a few hours ago.

"Just...Five minutes...All I need." the boy practically collapsed against a nearby tree, a few leaves drifting to the grassy floor on Hope's impact. Lightning paused, turned, and gave Hope a bitter stare. She already wasn't in the best of moods after Fang and Vanille's spectacle, and she was certainly not in the mood for any stragglers.

It was then that she noticed the others. Sazh had a better reason for being exhausted, the complaints about his age were obvious enough, the older man resting against a tree opposite of Hope. He extinguished an electric lamp he had recovered from some Pulsian wreckage, one of the groups only form of illumination in the darkened forest basin. They would have to stay in partial darkness until the afternoon.

"Whew...I'm too old for this." Sazh said in between inhaling deeply.

His little chocobo popped out of his afro, giving him a few reassuring chirps and kwehs. "No worries, chocobo, I won't be croaking anytime soon. That's for sure." he chuckled, patting the yellow bird's head gently.

Lightning saw Snow lumber over to the two tired men. "We'll take a break." Snow instructed, a giant hand ruffling through Hope's silver hair.

Snow gave the kid his trademark grin to explain that everything would be alright. "I'll carry you if you're still exhausted, Hope." The two laughed while Sazh groaned.

"And what about me, huh?" he began, rubbing the back of his neck.

"You ain't gonna carry me if I'm still tired?" Snow laughed and brought the two to their feet. "I think I can manage that." he smacked a fist into an open palm.

"Take five everybody." he ordered. Hope and Sazh fell to the ground, letting out satisfied and cheerful groans.

"As if." Lightning scoffed, her arms around her chest.

"No~~!" Sazh and Hope cried in unison. "Yeah sis, give us all a—" Lightning silenced Snow with a quick backhand to his jaw.

"Do I have to remind you that we're on borrowed time? We can go Cie'th at any minute!"

Snow was rubbing his bruised face, his skin already showing signs of turning black and blue. He wiped a small trickle of blood dripping from his lips with a gloved hand and cracked his neck and jaw to realign to the bone. "No, my jaw remembers our Focus just fine, thank you." Lightning clenched a fist, eyes darting towards her gunblade. Today was definitely not her day, or Snow's for that matter.

The giant oaf raised his hands in surrender and backed down, not wanting to get hit a second time. Fang and Vanille, who had been unusually quite the entire time except for being lost in their own little world of playful back-and-forth banter and innocent touches, finally casted their judgement on the other four, much to Lightning's chagrin. Vanille dutifully bounded over to Snow to inspect his wound while Fang sauntered over to Lightning, the strawberry blonde already stiffening up to the raven-haired woman's approach.

"Don't worry about me, Vanille, I'll live with it. It's just a scratch." Snow said, a few more droplets of blood escaping as he spoke.

"Nuh-uh, Snow, just come here and let me patch you up." she ordered, her hands already glowing a soothing green. He relented, twisting his head to meet Vanille's hands.

"Let the kids have some fun, Light." Fang began, her toothy grin already telling Lightning she was hiding something devious.

Fang placed an arm around her shoulder, a friendly gesture to anyone else, but Lightning was already suspicious. She couldn't back away, Fang would only continue her advances, and for Vanille's sake she wouldn't hit Fang while the little redhead was around. Finished with Snow, an arm grabbed Vanille's shoulder, drawing her closer to Fang and Lightning. The bubbly little girl made a startled noise, not seeing the owner as her back was turned, but then realized it was Fang who grabbed her.

Lightning shrugged off Fang's arm, looking rather stoic and displeased at her intentions. The huntress' other arm remained around Vanille, who wrapped both her arms around Fang's affectionately.

"We're tired, Lightning," Vanille whined, pouting at the soldier girl. Lightning paused and hesitated. "Um..." she trailed on, eyes flickering from Sazh, to Hope, to Snow, and finally back at Vanille. Fang just flashed the strawberry blonde another smug grin, already knowing the answer that Lightning would say.

She exhaled, faking annoyance but ultimately yielded. Vanille's pouting face was too strong for Lightning, the soldier girl beginning to find it unbearably adorable. She could see why Fang gave in so easily, seeing the redhead's lower lip begin to jut out in angst.

"Fine...We'll take a break." she said, blowing a few stray hands away from her eyes unhappily.

"Oh so now that Vanille asks it is suddenly okay to take a break?" Snow added, rubbing his jaw again. Lightning glared at him, she really wasn't in the mood for Snow's idiocy. Her fist clenched tightly before Vanille's slender digits wrapped around her hand in an attempt to stop her. "Lightning, you should really be nicer to Snow." she asked sweetly, looking genuinely concerned for the giant's safety. Lightning would normally say "Never." or "Not even if Hell freezes over." but Vanille had already blasted down Lightning's emotional barrier. She surrendered a second time.

"Sorry." she said in the plainest, blandest monotone, making it obvious that she would not have apologized if Vanille hadn't spoken up. "Yay!" Vanille exclaimed, satisfied, leaping over to Lightning to suddenly embrace her. "Thank you, Lightning!" the soldier didn't have any time to react and stood there, stiff as a board.

A rosy tint flushed her cheeks as she looked away. Lightning was by no means a shy girl, despite being apprehensive towards hugs from anyone other than Serah, but her eyes had dropped down to Vanille's during the hug, being able to see completely down the girls shirt. Lightning could smell the herbal rinse Vanille used on her hair, the scented bioluminescent wildflowers encircling each of Suyyla's pools adding a pleasant, sweet odor.

As Vanille backed off, her attention jumping towards Hope, Snow, and Sazh, the strawberry blonde quirked an eyebrow at Fang. She merely shrugged nonchalantly at the redhead's hug, more innocent than tender. Lightning could feel her heart resume its beat, not realizing she had held her breath either.

"I got the perfect idea for a game we can play." Sazh chimed in, him and the other two male l'Cie unaware of the embrace between Lightning and Vanille, whom the former was eager to avoid either of the Pulsian's further remarks.

The old man got up, revealing two different colored handkerchiefs from a pocket in his coat. One red and one blue of simple and cheap fabric. He held them up to show the other five, Lightning feigning interest but glad he had taken Fang and Vanille's attention.

"A simple game of Capture the Flag. I assume we all know how to play? Two teams, try and get the other team's flag while protecting your own." he explained, handing the red "flag" to Lightning while keeping the blue with himself.

"We'll make the teams simple. Boys versus girls, Blue versus Red. " he finished, Lightning noting a downcast look descend upon Hope's face. The kid probably wanted to be on her team, she thought to herself. Lightning's eyes widened in the realization that she'd be teamed with Fang and more importantly Vanille. The raven-haired woman nodded knowingly to Lightning, before turning to Sazh with an evil smirk on her face.

"I think Sunshine here would prefer Shirts versus Skins."

Fang loved how Lightning's face contorted and looked away from Vanille and herself. Hope rapidly grabbed the bandana covering his l'Cie mark and pressed it against his nose with all his might. Lightning's eye twitched, trying with all her might to suppress the oh so pleasurable feeling of punching Fang right in the face, possibly even knocking a few teeth out and breaking her nose. She didn't hear any remarks from Snow, Sazh, or Hope; anger was blocking everything out.

Rather Vanille was oblivious to what Fang had said or simply didn't mind the joke, the bouncy young girl latched onto Fang and dragged her into a small clearing within the heavily-wooded basin. She mumbled something about a base camp and places to hide the flag, but Lightning never caught the entirety of her sentences. Making up the excuse that she had to cough, the soldier girl rubbed her face to try and relieve herself of the redness.

Snow, Sazh, and Hope had vanished by now, off making schemes and plans on how they were going to win. With an exhausted sigh and a look towards the afternoon sun hanging high in the sky, Lightning finally surrendered her strict soldier regimen and tried to enjoy the game at hand. She could always force them to march more anyway.

"Let's get this over with." she uttered, striding into the clearing where Fang and Vanille where debating over places to hide their flag.

"But what if they get you?" the little redhead asked, waving the red piece of fabric in her hand. The flag was deftly snatched away by Fang, a cocky smirk on her features. She ruffled Vanille's hair and told her not to worry about it.

"I won't get caught, Vanille. Besides Light I'm the fastest and strongest. So I'll keep the flag on me for safe keepin', yeah?" Fang reasoned, reaching for her spear to tie the flag around. Vanille groaned at the raven-haired woman's resistance and bounded over to Lightning.

"Dontcha' think we should keep the flag back here, where it's safe?" she asked, pointing to a hole carved into the side of a tree where the flag could easily be hidden. Lightning silently brushed by Vanille and inspected the hiding spot.

"You know, Fang, Vanille does have a point here. And you're not as fast _nor_ as strong as you think." Lightning responded, her lips curving into her own cocky smile, Fang watching her with deceptive jade eyes.

"Those sound like fightin' words, huh Light?" Fang said, challenging her. Lightning shrugged.

"Tch. We have a game to win, so let's go." she ordered, the other two falling in line to catch up to her pace. Lightning didn't pay too much attention to what Fang and Vanille were talking about, but through her peripheral she could see Vanille clinging to Fang's forearm, giggling about whatever nonsensical thing her mind suddenly drifted to. The huntress laughed, hugging Vanille tightly when the younger girl rubbed her bicep, telling her that she would definitely be able to take on someone as strong as Snow.

Lightning looked down at her arms as the trio continued to walk. While neither her nor Fang's arms had clearly defined muscles, Fang certainly had more evidence of it, the faint outline of abs showing on her perfectly flat stomach. She felt a twinge of jealousy as she flexed.

Suddenly a small figure darted through the bushes, the thick canopy blocking the sun from reaching most of him. He was careless though, loudly crunching on dead leaves and twigs and rustling the bushes he was trudging through. Lightning saw a flash of silver; Hope. The soldier girl paused the two other women with a raised hand, quieting them.

"All right!" Snow shouted, recklessly charging straight for Lightning, Fang, and Vanille. A stupid grin was on his face as he made a mad dash to tackle them. "I'm coming right to you, sis, no backing down!" he announced.

Fang bolted right in front of Lightning, the strawberry blonde gracefully removing herself from Snow's path anyway. The huntress' skin glowed a bright gold, feet firmly planted in the ground with her spear in a defensive stance. Snow collided right into Fang, the impact not even budging the woman while Snow was sprawled out on the ground.

"No fair! No one said we could use our powers!" Snow cried, his head spinning. "We're l'Cie you dolt, and besides, no one said we couldn't!" Fang countered, leaping backwards. A fierce battle cry came from Hope, frightened birds soaring off into the air. "Preemptive Strike!" he shouted, and the ground began to rupture and shake around the three females, sending them off balance.

Vanille shrieked, catching the attention of Lightning and Fang. They could see Hope rush out of the shadows, tossing an Aeroga spell right in the center of them. Vanille quickly huddled close to Fang, whose skin began to glow a vibrant gold once more, her Steelguard rooting her and her trembling companion in place.

"Aw yeah!" Snow exclaimed, punching his fist into an open palm in success, getting onto his feet. Lightning scolded herself for losing track of Hope, knowing that Snow was obviously the bait for Hope's trap. She hated that shit-eating grin the giant oaf always had on when he bested her, as rare as that was. Contrary to her name, Lightning was not quick enough to avoid the blast, Fang and Vanille avoiding the full brunt of the attack with a quick Steelguard.

The violent wind storm sent Lightning flying skywards, the gales biting and nipping at her skin. She opened her eyes, not realizing when or that she had even closed them in the first place. Gaining some control in the air, the soldier girl swung her feet downwards to land safely. Lightning could see Sazh farther back, projecting his enhancement spells onto Hope and Snow. She could see a small splash of blue coming from his afro at this height, and Lightning knew that the old man was carrying the flag.

The Aeroga spell abruptly ended, sending her plummeting back to the ground with an 'oof!' Fang and Snow were having an all-out brawl, while Hope tossed spells at Vanille in between healing. The redhead spell caster did not reciprocate, instead clumsily dodging and running away from Hope's attacks.

Lightning slammed into Snow, catching him by surprise. A few cleverly placed jabs and kicks shook the massive blonde off of Fang. Rather than widening the gap between himself and the two other combatants, Snow smashed his hand into the ground where thick and sharp pillars of ice burst forth, grazing against Lightning and Fang. The raven-haired woman was quick on her feet though, barreling into Snow and sweeping off his feet with a strike of her spear.

Lightning could hear the grunts and pants from everyone but Sazh now, silently wondering where the old man could be and what he was up to. Hope was behind her, healing himself up after Vanille finally gained the courage to counterattack. Surprisingly, the young Pulsian attacked with as much ferocity as Fang, her demure figure easy to underestimate. Snow and Fang were grappling now, rolling around on the ground like morons.

"Ah~~!" Vanille screamed, Lightning's head snapping to attention. Hope had thrown another Aeroga spell her way, and unfortunately Vanille was not able to dodge it. The harsh winds heaved her upwards as easily as lifting a tree branch, tossing the girl around the cyclone.

"Vanille!" Fang and Lightning cried in unison, the former dextrously kicking Snow away while the latter leaped into the air without so much of a second thought. Lightning caught the disoriented girl at the apex of her jump, the wind spell suddenly ending mere seconds afterwards. With Vanille wrapped in her arms Lightning dropped safely, the redhead screaming and squirming all the way down.

"Vanille!" Fang started, immediately at Lightning's side, a hand worriedly squeezed Vanille's dainty one. "You all right?" she asked, genuinely concerned at first but started to shake the girl to get her to stop screaming. "You're on the ground, Vanille! You're all right!"

Vanille stopped her shouting and opened her eyes, finding her arms wrapped around Lightning's body so tightly she was nearly choking the girl. A small yet comforting and reassuring smile was on Lightning's lips, keeping her held bridal style. "Y-You saved me...?" she murmured weakly, her eyes starting to well up. Lightning nodded slowly, confused.

"Don't worry abou—"

"_My hero!"_ Vanille sniveled, craning her head up to kiss Lightning on the cheek.

A quiet gasp escaped from the soldier girl's mouth, feeling her cheeks and ears flushing with a tint of rosy red. The kiss was chaste enough, a reward or thank you of some sort, but suddenly Lightning felt the world freeze all around her. Her heart beat a thousand times a minute while her breath hitched in her throat. Standing on jelly-legs, Lightning nearly dropped the girl. The kiss lasted only a second, but already Lightning was cataloguing every sensation that exploded into her mind. Vanille's mouth was so soft on her cheek...her lips so sweet and gentle...

"Um...Lightning?"

The soldier girl was suddenly snapped back into reality, her face thoroughly flushed, only worsening when Fang and Snow were only a few yards away. Lightning gulped nervously and looks down at Vanille.

"You can let go of me now." she asks. Innocently enough, to Lightning's relief. Her mind is wholly thankful, yet knowing that she'll have to rebuff her efforts to not let such emotions take over so quickly, _especially _with other people around. Lightning obediently complies, setting the girl down before she was swept up in Fang's arms.

Lightning felt another twinge of jealousy, but quelled it by spinning around, meeting a fully confused Hope.

"A-Are we still playing?" Hope stuttered, never seeing Lightning like he did now. He didn't direct his question to anyone specifically, and it was Vanille who responded.

"Of course we are!" her voice sounded as happy and chipper as she was this morning, as if what just happened was no big deal at all. Before Hope could even register the redhead's words he was blasted backwards into the bushes by Vanille's own magic. Everyone besides Hope bursted into hysterics, even Lightning couldn't help but crack a smile.

Lightning decided it was time to end it. Hope was on his feet, feeling like a deer caught in headlights from the soldier's glare. Hope mumbled something incomprehensible and conjured a wave of water from his glowing blue hands, sending it crashing towards Lightning. She agilely sidestepped the attack, butted Hope with the hilt of her gunblade and tackled him to the ground, straddling him. Sparkling electricity danced on her fingertips, inches away from Hope's neck, signaling his defeat.

"I don't think you will be defeating the master anytime soon, student." she said to him, flicking his forehead and helping him to his feet. He groaned in defeat, being the first to lose. Lightning stepped back over to where Vanille was, the girl watching Fang and Snow wrestle.

"I. Am. The. Victor!" Fang shouted as loud as she could, holding Snow's black bandana to the sky. Snow groaned and joined Hope.

"And then there was one." Fang declared loud enough for Sazh to hear. The old man walked into the center clearing where the others were at, hands raised in surrender.

"Okay, okay, ya got me." he admitted. "I'm too old to put up a fight against you three."

"The flag is in his afro." Lightning directed, a hand held out to claim her prize. Sazh chuckled, flashing a bright white smile.

"Sorry, but the Chocobo got away, you'll have to catch him."

It was not until later that Vanille found the little yellow bird hiding inside the same tree her, Fang, and Lightning hid their own flag, the sleeping little puffball adorably bundled up in both pieces of cloth.

Six more games, Lightning's team had won all but the very last, and many hours later, the six l'Cie set up their campsite for the night. Sleeping arrangements were normal: Snow hogged the fire's warmth and the largest tarp, Hope slept close by, and Sazh was sleeping next to the drying cook pot, surprisingly eating more than anyone else. All three of them were tired and exhausted beyond belief, having to pull out all the stops to try and win just one game of Capture the Flag, without using l'Cie powers during the last few games.

Lightning sat on a rolled over log near the edge of the camp, she was on first watch as usual, opposite of Fang. Vanille had snuggled close to Fang to sleep, close enough to nearly meld their bodies together. Fang's arms were wrapped around Vanille protectively, whispering things Lightning could not hear, and probably did not want to hear at this point.

The strawberry blonde could still feel the goosebumps on her cheek from where Vanille kissed her. She knew it was childish to make such a big deal out of it, the brief contact nowhere near romantic, yet Lightning couldn't deny the befuddled mass of confused feelings washing over her whenever her hand rubbed the spot. The attraction was certainly there, but Lightning was at a loss with how to carry out whatever her subconscious was actually trying to get her to do. Seeing the sideways glances they gave each other, the loving touches and kisses, just made it worse for Lightning.

If there was one thing Lightning Farron could not deny, was that she was jealous of Fang and Vanille.

"She likes you, you know." Fang said plainly, breaking the silence Lightning had welcomed and cherished. Night was falling, the symphony of crickets, birds, and other animals singing their melancholic tunes.

Lightning's ears perked up at the statement, suppressing a blush. She felt like she was intruding upon what Fang and Vanille already had established, knowing that she would start to make advances on Vanille if no one stopped her. Lightning wasn't one to condone infidelity, feeling plain wrong at the emotions welling up inside her whenever she locked eyes with the bubbly young redhead. It made her worried that Fang was already aware, and strangely not sounding angry.

"Don't worry, she's asleep." Fang said, reading Lightning's thoughts. The huntress affectionately petted Vanille's bright curls, running her hand through her hair. Lightning felt slightly relieved by Fang's words.

"I know you like her too." she added, a smirk on her lips. Lightning couldn't find the words to reply, not that Fang needed any input. All she could do was deny Fang's claim with a vigorous shake of her head. Fang scoffed.

"Don't bother denying it, Sunshine, I see the same things going through your head, the same feelings that I felt when I fell in love with her." Fang revealed, planting a kiss on Vanille's forehead. The girl mumbled in her sleep, nuzzling closer to Fang.

Lightning was caught red-handed.

"You can go ahead and make your advances. I won't mind." Fang said, receiving an incredulous look from Lightning. The soldier wondered if she was actually serious.

"Y-You're...okay..." Lightning waved her hand back-and-forth between the three of them.

"Yup, so go ahead." Fang repeated, not sounding sarcastic in the least.

"Why?" Lightning asked. She received a happy smirk from Fang, whose eyes were staring intently at Vanille's sleeping form.

"Vanille knows I love her and I know she loves me. You can go ahead and do whatever you want, because I know by the end of the day, Vanille will be coming back to _me_."

Deep within Lightning's subconscious, she took that as a challenge.


End file.
